uca question

[tddfj]

getting ready to get lift installed was curious abou the ucas and caster. how many of you other that have a lift have had to change to a aftermarket uca because of alinment problem. if you have is this the norm or something that need to be done down the road after the lift has been on for awhile. just see that some people have changed theirs and some have not.

 

[underthehood]

I had a 2.5 spacer and my alignment was fine but the uca would hit the spring when fully decompressed. I recently got 0-3.5" Donahoe coilovers and added the Camburg uca. I have not got it aligned yet but I feel it was totally necessary in order to get the clearance from the spring and for my future alignment. Good luck..

 

[Corey]

Yes I had to, made a difference.
IH8MUD.com Forum - View Single Post - A few mods from 7-25-06

 

[ropedrag]

I've had Donahoe front coilovers for over a year and was able to get the alignment very close, meaning no unusual tire wear or numbers that would make an alignment tech uneasy. However I just added Total Chaos upper control arms.... what a difference, the thing handles so MUCH better! Should have done this awhile ago.

 

[KightOwl]

I have a 3" lift w/ stock UCA's and it "wanders" something fierce. Get new UCA's that add more caster. I am going to ASAP.

 

[tddfj]

kightowl what kind of lift do you have. just wondering if that makes a difference also.

 

[PhilC64]

I did a 3 inch Toytech 6 months ago and did not change UCA's. There is no reason to unless you're having rubbing or interference issues. A decent alignment shop should be able to correct any "wandering" issues you may get.

 

[KightOwl]

kightowl what kind of lift do you have. just wondering if that makes a difference also.

I have Fox Shox 2.0 from All Pro.

 

[Brock]

there is not much clearance between my UCA and the sidewall of my 295x70x17 Nitto Terra Grapplers running oem 17" alloy wheels....so have a couple questions:

1- is there a reason this might start rubbing during offroad wheelin or other...have not been able to determine any rubbing yet but it is likely only 1/2" clearance between sidewall and uca.

2- will replacing the UCA with something like All Pro or others...correct this and give more clearance for the tire sidewall

I was thinking that the way the wheel articulates it follows the same path up and down and wont be issue....maybe during a hard turn if it made tire flex.....or if I aired down and caused sidewall to bulge.

Any comments or options keeping my oem wheels?

 

[Toledo FJ]

It depens on the lift you are using and how high you are going. If you stay under three inches, the general consensus is that you don't need new UCAs. If you go over that height, you need them for sure. I have the OME lift on now and didn't need them. I'm upgrading to the ICON long travel lift and new UCAs are required with that kit even though I'm not going over three inches. I think I need them because of the extra travel. Look at the light racing UCAs if you are going to upgrade. They don't look as pretty as total chaos and ICON, but IMO they are better. They use factory style bushings and a sealed ball joint just like the OE arm. This means they will be quiet (tc and ICON can be very noisy) and much better suited for east coast winters and road salt. An exposed uniball like in the ICON or TC arms is not going to do well with road grime and salt. The guy I bought mine from sells all three brands and recommended light racing over the other two, despite the fact that he would make more money on the other brands. I'll post some pics of them if you like.

 

[ckline]

I had the DR coilovers installed as well. I had to crank them up because of the weight of the bullbar and winch to level the truck. I took to the dealership to see if I needed to switch anything out for warranty purposes and their answer was "no". I have also pressured down to 8-10 psi in sand/rock spots in Vegas and Cali and never rubbed. The BF is tall and thin though. I think I may have a problem if I go with the wrangler mt/r's though, since it adds an inch in height and an inch more rubber on the road. I fully expect to rub if I have to air down.

 

[ckline]

getting ready to get lift installed was curious abou the ucas and caster. how many of you other that have a lift have had to change to a aftermarket uca because of alinment problem. if you have is this the norm or something that need to be done down the road after the lift has been on for awhile. just see that some people have changed theirs and some have not.

TDDFJ what size wheel are you running? Looking at your truck, I thought it was already lifted. I've seen many trucks like yours in my area, same wheels with the procomp 6" on them. Everyone of them I have spoke with though have never taken their FJ OH. I ask myself why they spent the money, but its theirs to spend. Its an avatar so its hard to see exactly what kind of wheels they are, but if they are the same as the ones i see, do they do well on the trails? personally i wouldn't want to scratch those up!

 

[Mountainclimber]

It depens on the lift you are using and how high you are going. If you stay under three inches, the general consensus is that you don't need new UCAs. If you go over that height, you need them for sure. I have the OME lift on now and didn't need them. I'm upgrading to the ICON long travel lift and new UCAs are required with that kit even though I'm not going over three inches. I think I need them because of the extra travel. Look at the light racing UCAs if you are going to upgrade. They don't look as pretty as total chaos and ICON, but IMO they are better. They use factory style bushings and a sealed ball joint just like the OE arm. This means they will be quiet (tc and ICON can be very noisy) and much better suited for east coast winters and road salt. An exposed uniball like in the ICON or TC arms is not going to do well with road grime and salt. The guy I bought mine from sells all three brands and recommended light racing over the other two, despite the fact that he would make more money on the other brands. I'll post some pics of them if you like.

I'd like to see pictures of the Light Racing UCA's.

Toledo it sounds like you have a pretty sharp rig. Do you have a bunch of photos posted anywhere?

 

[tddfj]

ckline the wheels are dick cepek dc-1 black 17x9. it is lifted 3 inchs and has been off road. rims didd great but a tree limb did find its way into rim. but thats what i bought them for they have a high load capacity for offroading.